K2P91A HPE 3.84TB SAS 6GBPS 3par 8000 SFF 2.5in Solid State Drive

Overview of the HPE K2P91A Solid State Drive

Enhance your enterprise data storage performance with the HPE K2P91A Solid State Drive. Designed for reliability and speed, this high-capacity SSD is tailored for demanding workloads and seamless scalability in data-intensive environments.

Manufacturer Details

• Brand: HPE
• Model Number: K2P91A
• Type: Solid State Drive

Technical Specifications

• Capacity: 3.84TB
• Form Factor: 2.5-inch SFF
• Interface: SAS 6Gbps
• NAND Flash Type: Consumer Multi-Level Cell (CMLC)

Typical Use Cases and Deployment Scenarios

Virtualization and VDI Environments

Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) and large virtualization deployments place high random I/O demands on backend storage. The K2P91A 3.84 TB SSDs, with their SAS interface and enterprise firmware, are ideally suited to service many small random reads and writes with low latency. These SSDs can reduce I/O bottlenecks, improve VM boot storm handling, and enhance user experience under load.

In many 3PAR arrays, a tiered storage strategy is used where SSDs (like K2P91A) serve the “hot” tier, complemented by HDD or other media for “warm” or “cold” data. The performance headroom of K2P91A ensures that the hot tier doesn’t become a bottleneck.

Database, Analytics, and High Transaction Workloads

For database systems (OLTP, NoSQL, in-memory caching engines), write consistency, low latency, and sustained throughput are crucial. K2P91A SSDs deliver reliable performance under mixed read/write workloads and are better suited than consumer SSDs due to their enterprise-grade controllers, firmware, and error correction schemes.

Analytics or real-time processing workloads that scan large data blocks also benefit from the throughput and bandwidth headroom these SSDs provide. Combined with 3PAR’s tiering and caching mechanisms, K2P91A SSDs preserve performance consistency even under bursty workloads.

Virtual Machines, Containers, and Cloud Infrastructure

In private cloud or service provider settings, infrastructure built on VMware, Microsoft Hyper-V, or container platforms expects storage to deliver multi-tenant I/O isolation, low latency, and high concurrency. K2P91A SSDs are frequently deployed in such environments to host performance-critical VM or container volumes, database layers, metadata services, or caching layers.

These drives help maintain predictable performance even when workloads from multiple tenants converge onto the same storage array, reducing the risk of “noisy neighbor” effects.

High Availability, Redundancy, and Storage Tiering

Many 3PAR arrays implement RAID or erasure coding across drives for redundancy. Because the K2P91A series is drop-in compatible, it can be easily included in existing RAID groups or used to expand capacity. If maintenance or fault replacement is needed, matching the drive’s specs (firmware, endurance, interface) helps maintain array consistency.

Within tiered storage designs, K2P91A SSDs often reside in the top performance tier, while mid-tier SAS HDDs or NL-SAS drives host less performance-sensitive data. Dynamic data movement within 3PAR may promote or demote data based on heat; thus, the performance stability and reliability of K2P91A are essential to prevent “thrashing” between tiers.

Selection Criteria and Buying Considerations

Compatibility with HPE 3PAR 8000 Systems

Before purchase, confirm that the K2P91A SSD is on the compatibility or interop list for your specific 3PAR 8000 controller, firmware version, and enclosure. Some drives may require specific firmware versions or interposer boards. Ensure that the SKU, PN label, and drive firmware are matched to what your array will accept.

Also check whether dual-port SAS connectivity, path failover, and drive bay numbering are supported by your configuration. Drives that are not recognized or flagged in the system may be blacklisted or limited by the array firmware. Always test newly installed drives with the array’s drive consistency, drive rebuild, or pattern checking tools.

Endurance Rating and Warranty Tradeoffs

Enterprise SSDs are sold with endurance guarantees, often measured in DWPD (Drive Writes Per Day). For a 3.84 TB drive, a 3 DWPD rating implies you can write ~11.52 TB/day reliably over the warranty period without risking premature wear-out. If workload writes exceed that, the drive may wear faster. Some variants of the K2P91A may offer higher DWPD (e.g. 5 or 10 DWPD), but those models often cost more or have shorter capacities.

Warranty is also crucial: a 5-year or 7-year warranty backed by HPE is ideal; recertified models may offer only 1- or 2-year warranties. Be sure to factor warranty period, coverage (pro rata, full replacement), and any conditions (e.g. firmware updates) into total cost of ownership (TCO).

Performance Under Load and Steady-State Behavior

A new SSD often displays peak performance in burst or steady-state test. However, in real production environments, performance near steady state, during sustained writes, and under mixed loads matters more. When selecting a K2P91A drive, review manufacturer or vendor testing for 100 % steady-state write patterns, mixed 70/30 or 80/20 read/write testing, queue depth performance, and latency at high load.

Be alert to latency spikes, jitter, write amplification, and thermal throttling under heavy use. These phenomena can degrade performance in real deployments even if synthetic benchmarks look good.

Firmware, Updates, and Interoperability

SSD firmware is central to drive reliability, performance consistency, and error management. When buying from third parties or recertified sources, verify that the firmware is official or has been validated. Be cautious about downgraded or “modded” firmware that may cause array errors or compatibility issues.

Many enterprise SSD drives permit or require periodic firmware updates to fix bugs or optimize performance. In the context of 3PAR systems, firmware must be approved by HPE to avoid validation problems. Before deployment, check for the latest approved firmware revision, and whether updating in situ is supported under your SLA.

Rich Semantic Markup and Structured Data

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Competitive Landscape and Comparative Positioning

Comparison with Alternative SAS or NVMe SSDs

While SAS 12 Gbps, NVMe, and PCIe SSDs are becoming more common, within many existing 3PAR 8000 deployments, SAS 6 Gbps SFF 2.5" remains the supported or default choice. That said, some vendors offer newer alternatives:

• NVMe over Fabrics or NVMe SSDs may offer higher throughput and lower latency—but may require a different controller architecture.
• SAS 12 Gbps drives may offer double the interface bandwidth, but if your backplane or controller is limited to 6 Gbps, the advantage is moot.
• Lower-cost enterprise SAS SSDs from other brands may compete on price but often lack HPE 3PAR qualification, warranty coverage, or firmware compatibility.

Emphasize in your category messaging that K2P91A is specifically qualified for HPE’s 3PAR 8000 series—so customers won’t risk incompatibility or underperformance by using generic drives.

Firmware Patches, Updates, and Field Upgrades

Periodic firmware updates may address issues, improve performance, or add compatibility improvements. However, because drives in production arrays hold live data, firmware upgrades must be scheduled carefully, often during maintenance windows. Some drives support rolling firmware updates to minimize downtime.

Provide guidelines or compatibility matrices if possible, and direct users to trusted sources or documentation for K2P91A firmware updates and procedures. Warn users against unofficial firmware.

Reliable Server Compatibility

• Engineered to fit multiple HP ProLiant generations and models.
• Guaranteed compatibility for both tower and rack-mounted server systems.
• Optimized for easy installation and quick configuration.